Statements by the Ministry of Culture of the UOC incite interfaith hatred, – expert

Rather than contribute to the harmonization of the state and interfaith relations, the current activities of the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine are aimed at causing hatred bursts, said Yuri Reshetnikov, the former head of the State Committee on Nationalities and Religions, commenting to a UOJ correspondent on the statement by the Ministry of Culture, in which the UOC priests are accused of separatism.

"The biased statement by the Ministry of Culture does not relate to their direct responsibilities, – thinks Reshetnikov. – They, as the central executive body, should promote the harmonization of inter-faith relations and think of peace and order in our country. They should think about how to reduce the number of bursts of inter-faith hatred and enmity.

Instead, we see that the Ministry of Culture hits the populism and, by making such statements, ignores the fact that the Ukrainian Orthodox Church today is a powerful factor unifying citizens, both in Ukraine and in the territories, which are now, unfortunately, are beyond the control of the state. The Church is a bridge between the citizens of the two parts of the country. Instead, such statements only exacerbate inter-confessional enmity. If we look in the chronological order, we can see that such statements are usually followed by seizures and robberies of churches and other acts of vandalism."

Yuri Reshetnikov believes that, if justice does exist and prevail in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s claim filed to protect its rights will be considered in favour of the Church.

"I find it difficult to evaluate the judicial branch of government, – said the expert. – But if the UOC has filed a claim to the court on the disregard of its interests, in particular re-registration of statutes, I believe, the case must be decided in favour of the Church if, again, the Ukrainian court is based on equality and impartiality."